Farmers in the Playground celebrates 10 years of growing little gardeners

Farmers in the Playground, a hands-on garden education program in some schools in the Huntsville area, is celebrating its 10-year anniversary.

The program, initially supported by a grant from Toyota, began at Evergreen Heights in Emsdale 2011, and later expanded to Huntsville Public School and VK Greer in Port Sydney. A similar program runs at Irwin Memorial in Dwight. Each school has put their own spin on the program.

The project was spearheaded by Kelli Ebbs, current manager of the Muskoka North Good Food Co-op, who was inspired by Alice Walters and her Edible Schoolyard Project in Berkeley, California. The local program is now run by teachers and parent volunteers with support from farmers, chefs, and food entrepreneurs.

Hands-on learning in the program has included everything from clearing land and building garden boxes, to starting seeds and then planting them out, harvesting, and prepping the beds for winter.

After working in the dirt, and pre-COVID, students would head into the kitchen to make a healthy, nutrient-dense meal together, learning knife skills and other kitchen tool safety, and then eat as a group. They were responsible for the clean up as well.

“Kids learn resilience, self-reliance, proper nourishment, empowerment, and it’s also physically and mentally fulfilling,” said Ebbs. “It’s a thing that breeds community belonging and collaboration, the food just tastes so much better so enables a deep appreciation of healthy foods… Many kids who were part of these programs ended up building food gardens at their own homes with their own families where they were the teachers.”

Shelley Armstrong, grade 3 teacher at Evergreen Heights, has been running the Farmers in the Playground program at her school for nine years.

‘Changes and plants’ is a grade 3 unit, but Armstrong also has grade 7/8 students assisting some of the younger kids because they loved it so much when they were that age.

After the Toyota grant ran out, Evergreen sustained the program with an annual used book sale, money and supplies donated by Wal Mart, Canadian Tire and Your Independent Grocer, and past grants from the Sprucedale Horticultural Society. Armstrong still buys a lot of the supplies herself.

This year the used book sale, their biggest fundraiser, won’t run due to COVID but the program will continue.

“This program is so important to me,” said Armstrong. It’s truly been one of the best parts of teaching.”

When the snow is gone, students will prepare the garden and have a “poop day”, where the kids spread sheep manure across the beds.

They plant in early spring—only vegetables that will be ready late spring and early fall to avoid the need for harvesting during summer break.

Some of the kale harvested from Evergreen’s gardens last year (supplied)

In June, they harvest and eat salads, as well as rhubarb. Since they can no longer cook together in the school’s kitchen, Armstrong stews the rhubarb for them to eat with crackers; in the past she has baked it into muffins.

In the fall, when root veggies such as carrots and potatoes are ready, Armstrong holds a “farmers reunion” so the kids from the previous year’s grade 3 class get to see what they grew. She sends each student home with a bag full of veggies.

In addition to vegetables, the class also grows flowers to teach the kids about bees and pollination.

“The awesome thing about this program is that it covers so many things across the curriculum,” said Armstrong. “Healthy living, math, English [by] having to write a garden report, as well as some science aspects.”

The gardens also help build oral presentation skills and self-esteem as they hold “farm tours” for the kindergarten students.

“Our parents are shocked their kids are not only eating all these veggies but how much they love it and are proud of themselves,” said Armstrong. “Some parents have even come on their days off to help us which blew me away.”

Armstrong is retiring this year after 31 years of teaching and is hoping another teacher will take over.

“Farmers in the Playground has been such a wonderful memory from school for these kids,” she said. “Even after they graduate kids still check in to see how the garden is going.”

The gardens at Irwin Memorial Public School (supplied)

Although it’s not part of the Farmers in the Playground program, there is a similar initiative at Irwin Memorial, run by parent volunteer Sarah Roberts with support from the Dwight Lions Club and Lake of Bays Garden Centre, as well as some grants.

Irwin started with four raised beds in 2016, and now has 10.

One of the gardens is devoted to Thanksgiving produce such as pumpkins, garlic, squash, and potatoes as the school runs a kindergarten through grade 8 Thanksgiving dinner each year, which is organized by parent volunteer Emma Platts-Boyle. Due to the pandemic, last year’s produce was donated to The Table Food Bank instead.

Roberts runs the gardens in partnership with Melanie Maxwell, Irwin’s kindergarten teacher, but all grades are invited to participate.

“We have an outdoor kindergarten program where we’ve spent over 620 hours outdoors so far this school year and the garden is integral learning for us for around four months of the year as the three to six year-olds sow the seeds, water, and harvest the fruit,” said Maxwell. “It’s been tremendous learning and a community builder.”

While school is on break through the summer, many parents come to the garden to ensure it is taken care of.

“The seed-to-plate aspect is really important for the kids to learn,” said Roberts. “The Irwin family community has been incredible. It’s so beautiful to have the entire school participating and eventually eating together. The garden has touched everyone in their own way.”

Roberts has been given the go-ahead to keep the gardens running through COVID.

“Sarah Roberts has been a dream,” said Maxwell. “When she moved here with her daughter she asked, ‘How can I help?’ When I asked her to help to make a garden because I didn’t have a green thumb, she jumped at the chance. She’s spearheaded this project from day one and continues to support this year from a distance due to the pandemic. The garden would not be what it is today without her support.”

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